86 6.9 won't start

[TTMotorsports]

Ok so I recently purchased an 86 F-250 Supercab 4x4 with auto and it has a banks Sidewinder turbo kit. It was running and parked in 2019 because it was getting hot when driving on freeway pulling a grade, which I'm guessing is a bad fan clutch since same thing happened with an 89 7.3 I had.

So i'm trying to get this thing running and driving to get it back on the road. I dropped the front tank to check the inside and clean if necessary. It was super clean inside so I drained out the old fuel with a pump through the pickup tube to ensure that was working correctly. When tank was down I was inspecting the fuel selector valve when I noticed it was broken and someone bypassed it so it was only hooked up to run off the front tank. Reinstalled everything than cracked fuel line from lift pump to filter and wasn't getting any fuel when cranking. So installed the electric pump I have inline between tank and lift pump to make sure it's getting fuel to it, and that didn't help it work, so I replaced that and am getting good fuel up top so I filled new filter with diesel and installed it. Bled the air out the schrader valve. Than I loosened all the fuel lines to the injectors to bleed those and make sure the high pressure fuel pump was working. Cranked and got a good stream of fuel at every injector and then closed as that was happening. Went to start it and it would crank and crank and didn't even try to start. So I put the new batteries on the charger over night than the next day I turned key on and held glow plug button on bottom of dash for 1 minute, cranked it and it acted like it wanted to start but didn't. Let starter sit to cool down and did the same again with glow plug and this time held throttle down to the floor. It tried to sputter a couple short times but wouldn't fire. So charged batteries again while I ate lunch than went and tried again. Glow plug relay for 2 minutes this time, since light doesn't go out I'm guessing since the button on bottom of dash isn't stock, than did a short spray of starter fluid thinking it would fire up, and it didn't. So went back and bled all the injectors again with a good stream that hit the bottom of hood on 6 of them and the back injector on each bank only would dribble fuel out decently but not a spray. So repeated everything again with some starter fluid, full throttle, no throttle, half throttle, charging batteries etc and 0 luck.

Now what should I check out or test now to get this thing running, OR who in Socal, Inland Empire Area, should I call and take this thing to since I need to get it running so I can than proceed with brakes, wheels/tires, cleaning it up etc.

I'm new to these diesel engines since the 7.3 IDI i had only thing I ever did to that was change fan clutch and changed the oil/fuel filter with great success.

 

[IDIBRONCO]

Well I can say that your glow plugs are probably burned out. 8-10 seconds is usually all you want to hold the manual control. You may want to start by checking the glow plugs. Granted, I know that you're in SoCal, but it still wouldn't hurt.

 

[TTMotorsports]

Ok I'll change the glow plugs. They look easy to get to change and hopefully they all come out and none are broken off

 

[Rdnck84_03]

Well I can say that your glow plugs are probably burned out. 8-10 seconds is usually all you want to hold the manual control.

I would definitely agree that the glow plugs are burnt out with those kind of glow times.

But even with them not functional, the ether should have fired it off if the fuel was there.

James

 

[MadMac]

Be very careful extracting the GPs - do it slowly. If there is a bad GP with a mushroomed tip - you want that to score and not break off. Best of Luck. The “broken tip journey” is expensive. WHEN you replace the GPs - take the time to get the right ones, there are a plethora of fakes and lesser brands.

It should not take much ether to start - think spraying half a second should at least get it to run for 1 to 2 seconds. Which would confirm that it *can* run. If you put 10 seconds of ether down the intake - you’re at risk of taking an unexpected ride to the ER…

If you run the GPs for 60 seconds multiple times - it is likely they melted, burned up useless, or you have a GP fuse problem - look at the inline fuses too. My rule is - 6 seconds on, 2x that off - for 3 cycles, 4 cycles if it was below freezing IF you get them out - bench test them.

Combine ether and that the temps in the Inland Empire this time of year are just not cold enough, and I think the source of your problem is elsewhere. Plug the block heater in overnight. If it is 70 degrees at night - GPs are not your problem. Even temps of 50 should start.

After fixing everything you described initially in addition to new 4/0 battery to starter cable harness, red top batteries, third starter, Fuel / Air separator, a broken tip journey… mine starts in half a crank without GPs in 40 degree wet weather. In summer, there is no need for GPs - which reminds me I need to rig up a GP lockout switch. My 6.9 starting journey ended with the Air/Fuel separator.

 

[Old Goat]

I agree, you burned out the GP`s with that long of glow time.
Even here is Nevada in the summer, I glow about 6--7 sec with
the manual switch. After that, don`t need them rest of day.

Forget Starting Fluid, Block heater or remove Air Filter Lid and
element. Stick your trusty HF Heat gun down the intake, and the
heat from it will being sucked in, she will light off.
Works for the coldest of days here in northern Nevada.

Be sure to use Motorcraft Glow Plugs. ZD-1 for 6.9 and ZD-9 for 7.3.
Forget taking it to a shop, it is too old, no one wants to look at them,
and they have no knowledge how they work. (They are too simple to
figure out for the new generation electric/computer wizards)


Goat

 

[TTMotorsports]

Ok well I know that blowby was an issue on my friends 7.3 and the 6bt Cummins. So when cranking I removed oil filler cap and it spits out white smoke while cranking. So it's got major blowby so gonna pull glow plugs but in going to guess that one failed and caused a major issue on the motor.

 

[TTMotorsports]

Ok was able to remove all the glow plugs and cylinder #2 was shorter than the others and was broken off basically even to where the soot started on the good glow plugs. So I am guessing this one broke off and damaged that cylinder. Also 4 of them were newer looking than the others and didn't have as much soot on them so I'm going to believe it's not running because it's down a couple cylinders.

So I have a nice 86 F-250 Lariat 4x4 Supercab with a cleaned out front tank and new lift pump and filter that's going up for sale in Socal. Clean title in my name registered on non-op because it's not running so no back fee's. I am going to list it for sale for $5,000 unless you guys feel it's worth more being a complete Rust free supercab with banks sidewinder turbo kit and 4x4 with 35" tires.

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